Ms Leah Hoctor:

On the issue of men - the father or partner - being involved in decision-making, I believe, although I could be wrong, that Turkey is the only country of the 47 Council of Europe member states which has a spousal consent requirement for a married woman. No other European country has any kind of provision along those lines. Finland has the provision to which the Deputy referred and a few other European countries also indicate in their laws that, if possible, the father - the woman's partner - should be involved in the decision-making process. However, my understanding is that a degree of discretion applies and it is always considered appropriate that the woman's decision-making and her perspective be front and centre, while her partner or husband, if he is accompanying her, may be involved. I believe Finland may be unique in specifying that a man may have a possibility of having his voice heard. That provision is more unusual. It is rare for the law of a country to include a reference to the views of the partner or husband being taken into account, where possible. In some cases, the partner or husband may be asked to attend the consultation with the relevant physician or clinician, if possible.